System for Active-Focus Prediction in 360 Video

ABSTRACT

Aspects of the subject disclosure may include, for example, obtaining media content; analyzing the media content to discern a point of interest in the media content, wherein the analyzing may include scoring each of the point of interest in the media content; receiving a request from equipment of a user to view the media content; obtaining information about the user; identifying a predicted field of view of the user based on the information about the user and the analysis; sending the predicted field of view to the user; monitoring a line of sight of the user; and updating the analysis and the predicted field of view of the user based on the line of sight of the user. Other embodiments are disclosed.

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

The subject disclosure relates to predicting a user's focus in mediacontent, such as 360 degree video.

BACKGROUND

360 video has been gaining in popularity. However, 360 degree video, aswell as other forms of media content, consumes a large amount ofbandwidth. Because it is uncommon for a user to view the entire 360degree video, much of the bandwidth is wasted.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings, which are notnecessarily drawn to scale, and wherein:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example, non-limitingembodiment of a communications network in accordance with variousaspects described herein.

FIG. 2A is a block diagram illustrating an example, non-limitingembodiment of a system functioning within the communication network ofFIG. 1 in accordance with various aspects described herein.

FIG. 2B depicts an illustrative embodiment of a method in accordancewith various aspects described herein.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating an example, non-limitingembodiment of a virtualized communication network in accordance withvarious aspects described herein.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of an example, non-limiting embodiment of acomputing environment in accordance with various aspects describedherein.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of an example, non-limiting embodiment of amobile network platform in accordance with various aspects describedherein.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of an example, non-limiting embodiment of acommunication device in accordance with various aspects describedherein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The subject disclosure describes, among other things, illustrativeembodiments for predicting what portions of media content a user willactually consume, and providing the predicted portion rather that theentire media content. By monitoring what the user actually looks at, thesystem can learn about the users and/or better predict the user's fieldof view. Other embodiments are described in the subject disclosure.

One or more aspects of the subject disclosure include a methodcomprising obtaining and analyzing media content to discern a point ofinterest therein, identifying a predicted field of view of a user basedon information about the user and the analysis of the media content,sending the predicted field of view to the equipment of the user,monitoring a line of sight of the user, and updating the analysis andthe predicted field of view of the user based on the line of sight ofthe user.

One or more aspects of the subject disclosure include machine-readableinstructions that, facilitate performance of operations comprisingreceiving video content from a 360 degree camera, analyzing the videocontent to identify at least one potential point of interest,identifying a predicted field of view based on information about one ormore users and the analysis, sending the predicted field of view to theuser(s), monitoring a line of sight of the user(s), and updating theanalysis the predicted field of view based on the line of sight.

One or more aspects of the subject disclosure include an apparatuscomprising a processor; and a memory that stores instructions that,facilitate performance of receiving video content from a 360 degreecamera, analyzing the video content to identify at least one potentialpoint of interest, identifying a predicted field of view based oninformation about a user and the analysis sending less than 180 degreesof the video content centered on the predicted field of view to theuser, monitoring the user's line of sight based on eye movements, andupdating the analysis and the predicted field of view based on the lineof sight.

Referring now to FIG. 1, a block diagram is shown illustrating anexample, non-limiting embodiment of a communications network 100 inaccordance with various aspects described herein. In particular, acommunications network 125 is presented for providing broadband access110 to a plurality of data terminals 114 via access terminal 112,wireless access 120 to a plurality of mobile devices 124 and vehicle 126via base station or access point 122, voice access 130 to a plurality oftelephony devices 134, via switching device 132 and/or media access 140to a plurality of audio/video display devices 144 via media terminal142. In addition, communication network 125 is coupled to one or morecontent sources 175 of audio, video, graphics, text and/or other media.While broadband access 110, wireless access 120, voice access 130 andmedia access 140 are shown separately, one or more of these forms ofaccess can be combined to provide multiple access services to a singleclient device (e.g., mobile devices 124 can receive media content viamedia terminal 142, data terminal 114 can be provided voice access viaswitching device 132, and so on). The communications network 125 may bea component of a focus prediction service, as will be discussed ingreater detail below, or may merely facilitate communications betweenthe focus prediction service and user devices, such as the data terminal114, the mobile device 124, and/or other devices which will be discussedin greater detail below.

The communications network 125 includes a plurality of network elements(NE) 150, 152, 154, 156, etc. for facilitating the broadband access 110,wireless access 120, voice access 130, media access 140 and/or thedistribution of content from content sources 175. The communicationsnetwork 125 can include a circuit switched or packet switched network, avoice over Internet protocol (VoIP) network, Internet protocol (IP)network, a cable network, a passive or active optical network, a 4G, 5G,or higher generation wireless access network, WIMAX network,UltraWideband network, personal area network or other wireless accessnetwork, a broadcast satellite network and/or other communicationsnetwork.

In various embodiments, the access terminal 112 can include a digitalsubscriber line access multiplexer (DSLAM), cable modem terminationsystem (CMTS), optical line terminal (OLT) and/or other access terminal.The data terminals 114 can include personal computers, laptop computers,netbook computers, tablets or other computing devices along with digitalsubscriber line (DSL) modems, data over coax service interfacespecification (DOCSIS) modems or other cable modems, a wireless modemsuch as a 4G, 5G, or higher generation modem, an optical modem and/orother access devices.

In various embodiments, the base station or access point 122 can includea 4G, 5G, or higher generation base station, an access point thatoperates via an 802.11 standard such as 802.11n, 802.11ac or otherwireless access terminal. The mobile devices 124 can include mobilephones, e-readers, tablets, phablets, wireless modems, and/or othermobile computing devices.

In various embodiments, the switching device 132 can include a privatebranch exchange or central office switch, a media services gateway, VoIPgateway or other gateway device and/or other switching device. Thetelephony devices 134 can include traditional telephones (with orwithout a terminal adapter), VoIP telephones and/or other telephonydevices.

In various embodiments, the media terminal 142 can include a cablehead-end or other TV head-end, a satellite receiver, gateway or othermedia terminal 142. The display devices 144 can include televisions withor without a set top box, personal computers and/or other displaydevices.

In various embodiments, the content sources 175 include broadcasttelevision and radio sources, video on demand platforms and streamingvideo and audio services platforms, one or more content data networks,data servers, web servers and other content servers, and/or othersources of media.

In various embodiments, the communications network 125 can includewired, optical and/or wireless links and the network elements 150, 152,154, 156, etc. can include service switching points, signal transferpoints, service control points, network gateways, media distributionhubs, servers, firewalls, routers, edge devices, switches and othernetwork nodes for routing and controlling communications traffic overwired, optical and wireless links as part of the Internet and otherpublic networks as well as one or more private networks, for managingsubscriber access, for billing and network management and for supportingother network functions.

FIG. 2A is a block diagram illustrating an example, non-limitingembodiment of a system 200 functioning within the communication networkof FIG. 1 in accordance with various aspects described herein. A focusprediction service (FPS) 202 of the disclosed embodiments obtains mediacontent, such as from the content source 175 through the communicationsnetwork 125. The FPS 202 analyzes the content in an attempt to predictwhere users may look within the content. When user(s) request thecontent, the FPS 202 may identify a predicted field of view of theuser(s), possibly based off the analysis and/or information obtainedabout the user(s), as will be discussed in greater detail below. The FPS202 may send that predicted field of view, and/or actual line(s) ofsight, to the user(s) equipment, rather than the entire media content,thereby conserving bandwidth. The FPS 202 may obtain the media contentbefore or after receiving a user request for the content. The user mayinteract with the FPS 202 through a variety of devices, such as the dataterminal 114, the mobile device 124, Virtual Reality (VR) headset 204,Viewing Room Equipment (VRE) 206, other equipment, and/or anycombination thereof. For example, the FPS 202 may communicate directlywith the VR headset 204 and/or VRE 206, through the communicationsnetwork 125, and/or through the data terminal 114, the mobile device124, other equipment, and/or any combination thereof.

FIG. 2B depicts an illustrative embodiment of a method 220 in accordancewith various aspects described herein. As shown in 222, the FPS 202obtains media content, such as from the content source 175 through thecommunications network 125. The media content may be 360 degree video,three-dimensional video, other media content, and/or a combinationthereof.

As shown in 224, the FPS 202 may analyze the media content to discern aplurality of points of interest in the media content. This analysis mayinclude scoring each of the points of interest in the media content. Forexample, the FPS 202 may have monitored previous users' consumption ofthe media content, tracking their field of view and/or actual gaze, andtherefore determined where those previous users looked within the mediacontent. Thus, the scoring may comprise a tally of how often previoususers have looked at a particular point of interest in the mediacontent. In some embodiments, users may choose to opt-out of suchmonitoring. In some embodiments, users must opt-in in order for theirconsumption of the media content to be monitored in this manner.

The tally itself can be used to identify further points of interest. Forexample, if users frequently look at the same point, or spot, in themedia content, that point may be identified as a possible point ofinterest. The more often previous users have looked at a particularpoint, the more likely it may be a point of interest for future users.Thus, not only can the tally be used in the scoring of points ofinterest, the tally may also be used to identify points of interest.

The FPS 202 itself may perform the analysis. In some embodiments,another element or elements perform the analysis and/or identify pointsof interest in the media content. For example, the content source 175may provide the points of interest along with the media content. In anycase, the identification of the points of interest may evolve as moreusers view the media content.

As shown in 226, the FPS 202 may receive or otherwise obtain a userrequest for the media content. Such a request may be received before orafter the FPS 202 has obtained and/or initially analyzed the mediacontent. For example, the FPS 202 may obtain access to the mediacontent, but wait for a user request to actually analyze it, therebyconserving resources.

As shown in 228, the FPS 202 may also obtain information about the user.This information may include demographic information about the user,such as age, gender, etc. This information may include user preferencesand/or user viewing habits.

As shown in 230, the FPS 202 may identify or otherwise predict a fieldof view of the user based on the information about the user(s) and thepoints of interest in the media content. In some embodiments, the fieldof view may contain points of interest that are likely to be of interestto the user, based on the analysis and information about the user. Forexample, in some embodiments, a field of view of previous users may beconsidered likely to be of interest to future users. In someembodiments, the content itself, as received from the content source175, may contain predicted points of interest. Such origin-specifiedpoints of interest may be used as unique points to be modified or asreference points that may later be replaced or overridden by furtherprocessing and/or analysis, as described herein.

In some embodiments, the demographic information about the user may betaken into account. For example, a field of view of previous userssharing similar demographics with the user may be considered likely tobe of interest to the user. Thus, the FPS 202 may account for both theinitial analysis as well as specific information about the user in orderto identify or otherwise predict a field of view of the user.

In some embodiments, the FPS 202 may adapt to predict points of interestfor certain physical limitations and/or capabilities of a user. Forexample, similar to the detection of points of interest that may focuson certain actors or buildings in a scene, the FPS 202 may also identifypreferences for users with low-vision, sharpness sensitivity, colorblindness, or some other limitation. Such user capabilities would may beprocessed much like the demographic information discussed herein.

User preferences may also be used to supplement, replace, and/oroverride the demographic information and/or other information about theuser. For example, a specific user may be interested in things similarlysituated users may not be. As such, that user can override normaldemographic processing. As another example, user preferences (possiblyin the form of parental controls) may be used to ensure certain usersare not exposed to inappropriate material. In some embodiments, userpreferences may be used to specify topics or subject matter that aspecific user is or is not interested in.

Similarly, a user's actual viewing habits may be used to enhance,update, or even correct the information about a user. For example, auser may specify that they are interested in a specific subject, such asin user preferences. The FPS 202, or another portion of the system, maynotice over time that they tend to not pay much attention to certainpoints of interest highlighted due to matching that specific subject.The FPS 202 may update the information about the user, such as byrefining the subject further, or applying less weight to the specificsubject in determining which points of interest may be of interest tothe user.

Similarly, in some cases, the FPS 202 may notice over time that a usertends to pay more attention to certain points of interest, that were nototherwise flagged as being points of interest likely to be of interestto the user. Here again, the FPS 202 may update the information aboutthe user, such as by applying more weight to a specific subject indetermining which points of interest may be of interest to the user.

As shown in 232, the FPS 202 may extract the field of view from themedia content, or otherwise create the user's predicted field of view.In some embodiments, the field of view may be centered on one or morepoints of interest, and include up to 90 degrees around the one or morepoints of interest. For example, the user's predicted field of view maycomprise 180 degrees (horizontally and/or vertically) centered on theone or more points of interest. In this manner, as will be discussed ingreater detail below, the system need only present half, or less thanhalf, of the media content, thereby preserving bandwidth and saving datacharges.

In some embodiments, the user's predicted field of view may compriseless than 180 degrees (horizontally and/or vertically) centered on theone or more points of interest. In some embodiments, the user'spredicted field of view may comprise less than 135 degrees (horizontallyand/or vertically) centered on the one or more points of interest,thereby using even less bandwidth and data charges. In some embodiments,the user's predicted field of view may comprise less than 90 degrees(horizontally and/or vertically) centered on the one or more points ofinterest, which may require a minimum bandwidth and/or data charges.

As shown in 234, the FPS 202 then presents the predicted field of viewto the user. In some embodiments, the FPS 202 may present the predictedfield of view to the user's equipment or device(s). For example, the FPS202 may present the predicted field of view to the user's VR headset204, the data terminal 114, the mobile device 124, Viewing RoomEquipment 206, other equipment, and/or any combination thereof. Thatdevice may then present the predicted field of view to the user.

As shown in 236, the FPS 202 may monitor the user's actual field ofview. In some embodiments, the system monitors the position andorientation of the user's VR headset 204. In some embodiments, thesystem monitors an actual view through a device. For example, ratherthan merely monitoring the position and orientation of the user's VRheadset 204, the FPS 202 may monitor the user's actual line of sight orgaze. More specifically, depending upon the hardware used, the FPS 202may actually monitor the user's eyes and discern where the user isactually looking, rather than just where their head (or VR headset 204)is pointing. This may be done, for example, by detecting reflectionsfrom the user's eyes, or monitoring images of the user's eyes, anddetermining therefrom which direction the user is looking, which may berelative to (but different from) orientation of the user's VR headset204.

By knowing where the user is actually looking, the FPS 202 may alsopresent the portion of the media content at which the user is actuallylooking, i.e. their actual field of view, gaze, or line of sight,whether or not that portion corresponds to the predicted field of view.In some embodiments, the FPS 202 may also present the user's line ofsight, in addition to the predicted field of view. For example, in someembodiments, the FPS 202 may present up to 180 degrees (horizontallyand/or vertically) of the media content centered on the user's actualline of sight. In this case, should the user be looking directlyopposite the predicted field of view, the FPS 202 may present the full360 degrees of the media content. Or course, to the extent the predictedfield of view and the user's actual line of sight overlap, the FPS 202need not present the full 360 degrees of the media content, therebyconserving bandwidth and/or data charges.

In some embodiments, the FPS 202 may present less than 180 degrees(horizontally and/or vertically) of the media content centered on theuser's actual line of sight. In some embodiments, the FPS 202 maypresent less than 135 degrees (horizontally and/or vertically) of themedia content centered on the user's actual line of sight, thereby usingless bandwidth and data charges. In some embodiments, the FPS 202 maypresent less than 90 degrees (horizontally and/or vertically) of themedia content centered on the user's actual line of sight, thereby usingeven less bandwidth and data charges.

In some embodiments, the FPS 202 may determine a midpoint between thepredicted field of view and the user's actual line of sight. In thiscase, the FPS 202 may present up to 180 degrees (horizontally and/orvertically) of the media content centered on the midpoint. In someembodiments, the FPS 202 may present less than 180 degrees (horizontallyand/or vertically) of the media content centered on the midpoint. Insome embodiments, the FPS 202 may present less than 135 degrees(horizontally and/or vertically) of the media content centered on themidpoint, thereby using less bandwidth and data charges. In someembodiments, the FPS 202 may present less than 90 degrees (horizontallyand/or vertically) of the media content centered on the midpoint,thereby using even less bandwidth and data charges. The FPS 202 maydetermine how much of the media content to present based on how closelythe predicted field of view and the user's actual line of sightcorrelate.

As shown, and discussed above, the FPS 202 knows where it predicts theuser will look, i.e. the predicted field of view, for example, and wherethe user is actually looking, i.e. the user's actual line of sight. Tothe extent these two correlate, the identification of the points ofinterest, as well as the information about the user, may be consideredaccurate. Otherwise, the analysis (including the identification of thepoints of interest and/or scoring thereof), as well as the informationabout the user may be updated, enhanced, or otherwise supplemented,based on where the user is actually looking as compared to where the FPS202 predicts the user will look.

For example, as discussed above, where users actually look may be usedto further identify possible points of interest. Similarly, if userstypically linger at certain points of interest, then those points may begiven more weight, and/or a higher scoring, when identifying and/orscoring points of interest. On the other hand, if users typically avoidcertain points of interest, then those points may be given less weight,and/or a lower scoring, when identifying and/or scoring points ofinterest.

All of this analysis may be done specific to the user. For example, asthe user uses the system, the system may continually learn more aboutthat user's true interests, which may then be used to improve thepredicted field of view. This may also be done on the fly. For example,where the FPS 202 identifies the predicted field of view in the mediacontent based on information then known about the user (or in theabsence of such information), the FPS 202 monitors the user's actualline of sight and may more accurately identify the predicted field ofview in later portions of that same media content.

The FPS 202 may perform the above processes on the same or differentmedia content for multiple users, such that each user experience isdifferent. For example, the FPS 202 may present the same portion of themedia content to two different users, or may present different predictedfields of view to different users. The FPS 202 may do so simultaneouslyand/or using the same equipment. For example, where two users areutilizing the same Viewing Room Equipment 206, or terminal 114 (possiblywith two separate VR headsets 204), the FPS 202 may present twodifferent predicted fields of view to the Viewing Room Equipment 206and/or the terminal 114, for distinct presentation through the two VRheadsets 204. In some embodiments, where two users are utilizing thesame Viewing Room Equipment 206, or terminal 114 (possibly with twoseparate VR headsets 204), the FPS 202 may present one predicted fieldof view to the Viewing Room Equipment 206 and/or the terminal 114, forpresentation through the two VR headsets 204. In some embodiments, theFPS 202 may also present the users' actual lines of sight, to the extentthey differ from the predicted field(s) of view.

In some embodiments, the FPS 202 may determine a midpoint between theusers' actual lines of sight. In this case, the FPS 202 may present upto 360 degrees (horizontally and/or vertically) of the media content,where the users' actual lines of sight differ significantly. In someembodiments, the FPS 202 may present less than 180 degrees (horizontallyand/or vertically) of the media content centered on the midpoint. Insome embodiments, the FPS 202 may present less than 135 degrees(horizontally and/or vertically) of the media content centered on themidpoint, thereby using less bandwidth and data charges. In someembodiments, the FPS 202 may present less than 90 degrees (horizontallyand/or vertically) of the media content centered on the midpoint,thereby using even less bandwidth and data charges. The FPS 202 maydetermine how much of the media content to present based on how closelythe predicted fields of view and/or the users' actual lines of sightcorrelate.

In some embodiments, the FPS 202 may determine a midpoint between thepredicted fields of view for the different users. In this case, the FPS202 may present up to 360 degrees (horizontally and/or vertically) ofthe media content, where the predicted fields of view for the differentusers differ significantly. In some embodiments, the FPS 202 may presentless than 180 degrees (horizontally and/or vertically) of the mediacontent centered on the midpoint. In some embodiments, the FPS 202 maypresent less than 135 degrees (horizontally and/or vertically) of themedia content centered on the midpoint, thereby using less bandwidth anddata charges. In some embodiments, the FPS 202 may present less than 90degrees (horizontally and/or vertically) of the media content centeredon the midpoint, thereby using even less bandwidth and data charges. TheFPS 202 may determine how much of the media content to present based onhow closely the predicted field of view and the user's actual line ofsight correlate.

In some embodiments, the FPS 202 may determine a midpoint between thepredicted fields of view for the different users and the users' actuallines of sight. In this case, the FPS 202 may present up to 360 degrees(horizontally and/or vertically) of the media content, where predictedfields of view for the different users and/or the users' actual lines ofsight differ significantly. In some embodiments, the FPS 202 may presentless than 180 degrees (horizontally and/or vertically) of the mediacontent centered on the midpoint. In some embodiments, the FPS 202 maypresent less than 135 degrees (horizontally and/or vertically) of themedia content centered on the midpoint, thereby using less bandwidth anddata charges. In some embodiments, the FPS 202 may present less than 90degrees (horizontally and/or vertically) of the media content centeredon the midpoint, thereby using even less bandwidth and data charges. TheFPS 202 may determine how much of the media content to present based onhow closely the predicted fields of view and/or the users' actual linesof sight correlate.

It will be appreciated, having read this disclosure, that the FPS 202may obtain the media content directly, or indirectly from a 360 degreecamera. For example, one of the content sources may act as a host forthe 360 degree camera, storing prerecorded footage or otherwise makingsuch media content available. In some embodiments, the FPS 202 mayobtain live, or near real time, media content (directly or indirectly)from the 360 degree camera.

Some 360 degree cameras are essentially two 180 degree cameraspositioned back to back, thereby providing 360 degrees of audio/videomedia content. In some cases, a seam between the fields of view of thetwo cameras is discernable. Therefore, in some embodiments, the FPS 202may generate control signals to, or for, the camera to align it with thepredicted field(s) of view, the users' actual line(s) of sight, and/or amidpoint there between.

In some embodiments, such as where the FPS 202 receives live, real-time,or near real-time content from a camera and where the FPS 202 provides180 degrees or less of the media content to the user's equipment, forexample, the camera need not be a 360 camera to effectively provide 360degrees of audio/video media content. Specifically, most people canfocus on, or effectively see, less than 180 degrees. Therefore, toactually view 360 degrees, a user must turn their head, and cannot viewa full 360 degrees simultaneously.

Where the FPS 202 controls the alignment/orientation of the camera, theFPS 202 can ensure that the camera is pointing in the direction the useris actually looking (since the FPS 202 can also track the user's actualfield of view), thereby simulating 360 degree video with a camera thatonly generates 180 degrees, or less, of media content. In someembodiments, the FPS 202 simulate 360 degree video with a camera thatonly generates 135 degrees, or less, of media content. In someembodiments, especially where a user's focus is expected to be precise,the FPS 202 simulate 360 degree video with a camera that only generates90 degrees, or less, of media content.

While for purposes of simplicity of explanation, the respectiveprocesses are shown and described as a series of blocks in FIG. 2B, itis to be understood and appreciated that the claimed subject matter isnot limited by the order of the blocks, as some blocks may occur indifferent orders and/or concurrently with other blocks from what isdepicted and described herein. Moreover, not all illustrated blocks maybe required to implement the methods described herein.

Referring now to FIG. 3, a block diagram 300 is shown illustrating anexample, non-limiting embodiment of a virtualized communication networkin accordance with various aspects described herein. In particular avirtualized communication network is presented that can be used toimplement some or all of the subsystems and functions of communicationnetwork 100, the subsystems and functions of system 200, and method 220presented in FIGS. 1, 2A, 2B, and 3.

In particular, a cloud networking architecture is shown that leveragescloud technologies and supports rapid innovation and scalability via atransport layer 350, a virtualized network function cloud 325 and/or oneor more cloud computing environments 375. In various embodiments, thiscloud networking architecture is an open architecture that leveragesapplication programming interfaces (APIs); reduces complexity fromservices and operations; supports more nimble business models; andrapidly and seamlessly scales to meet evolving customer requirementsincluding traffic growth, diversity of traffic types, and diversity ofperformance and reliability expectations.

In contrast to traditional network elements—which are typicallyintegrated to perform a single function, the virtualized communicationnetwork employs virtual network elements (VNEs) 330, 332, 334, etc. thatperform some or all of the functions of network elements 150, 152, 154,156, etc. For example, the network architecture can provide a substrateof networking capability, often called Network Function VirtualizationInfrastructure (NFVI) or simply infrastructure that is capable of beingdirected with software and Software Defined Networking (SDN) protocolsto perform a broad variety of network functions and services. Thisinfrastructure can include several types of substrates. The most typicaltype of substrate being servers that support Network FunctionVirtualization (NFV), followed by packet forwarding capabilities basedon generic computing resources, with specialized network technologiesbrought to bear when general purpose processors or general purposeintegrated circuit devices offered by merchants (referred to herein asmerchant silicon) are not appropriate. In this case, communicationservices can be implemented as cloud-centric workloads.

As an example, a traditional network element 150 (shown in FIG. 1), suchas an edge router can be implemented via a VNE 330 composed of NFVsoftware modules, merchant silicon, and associated controllers. Thesoftware can be written so that increasing workload consumes incrementalresources from a common resource pool, and moreover so that it'selastic: so the resources are only consumed when needed. In a similarfashion, other network elements such as other routers, switches, edgecaches, and middle-boxes are instantiated from the common resource pool.Such sharing of infrastructure across a broad set of uses makes planningand growing infrastructure easier to manage.

In an embodiment, the transport layer 350 includes fiber, cable, wiredand/or wireless transport elements, network elements and interfaces toprovide broadband access 110, wireless access 120, voice access 130,media access 140 and/or access to content sources 175 for distributionof content to any or all of the access technologies. In particular, insome cases a network element needs to be positioned at a specific place,and this allows for less sharing of common infrastructure. Other times,the network elements have specific physical layer adapters that cannotbe abstracted or virtualized, and might require special DSP code andanalog front-ends (AFEs) that do not lend themselves to implementationas VNEs 330, 332 or 334. These network elements can be included intransport layer 350.

The virtualized network function cloud 325 interfaces with the transportlayer 350 to provide the VNEs 330, 332, 334, etc. to provide specificNFVs. In particular, the virtualized network function cloud 325leverages cloud operations, applications, and architectures to supportnetworking workloads. The VNEs 330, 332 and 334 can employ networkfunction software that provides either a one-for-one mapping oftraditional network element function or alternately some combination ofnetwork functions designed for cloud computing. For example, VNEs 330,332 and 334 can include route reflectors, domain name system (DNS)servers, and dynamic host configuration protocol (DHCP) servers, systemarchitecture evolution (SAE) and/or mobility management entity (MME)gateways, broadband network gateways, IP edge routers for IP-VPN,Ethernet and other services, load balancers, distributers and othernetwork elements. Because these elements don't typically need to forwardlarge amounts of traffic, their workload can be distributed across anumber of servers—each of which adds a portion of the capability, andoverall which creates an elastic function with higher availability thanits former monolithic version. These VNEs 330, 332, 334, etc. can beinstantiated and managed using an orchestration approach similar tothose used in cloud compute services.

The cloud computing environments 375 can interface with the virtualizednetwork function cloud 325 via APIs that expose functional capabilitiesof the VNEs 330, 332, 334, etc. to provide the flexible and expandedcapabilities to the virtualized network function cloud 325. Inparticular, network workloads may have applications distributed acrossthe virtualized network function cloud 325 and cloud computingenvironment 375 and in the commercial cloud, or might simply orchestrateworkloads supported entirely in NFV infrastructure from these thirdparty locations.

Turning now to FIG. 4, there is illustrated a block diagram of acomputing environment in accordance with various aspects describedherein. In order to provide additional context for various embodimentsof the embodiments described herein, FIG. 4 and the following discussionare intended to provide a brief, general description of a suitablecomputing environment 400 in which the various embodiments of thesubject disclosure can be implemented. In particular, computingenvironment 400 can be used in the implementation of network elements150, 152, 154, 156, access terminal 112, base station or access point122, switching device 132, media terminal 142, and/or VNEs 330, 332,334, etc. Each of these devices can be implemented viacomputer-executable instructions that can run on one or more computers,and/or in combination with other program modules and/or as a combinationof hardware and software.

Generally, program modules comprise routines, programs, components, datastructures, etc., that perform particular tasks or implement particularabstract data types. Moreover, those skilled in the art will appreciatethat the inventive methods can be practiced with other computer systemconfigurations, comprising single-processor or multiprocessor computersystems, minicomputers, mainframe computers, as well as personalcomputers, hand-held computing devices, microprocessor-based orprogrammable consumer electronics, and the like, each of which can beoperatively coupled to one or more associated devices.

As used herein, a processing circuit includes one or more processors aswell as other application specific circuits such as an applicationspecific integrated circuit, digital logic circuit, state machine,programmable gate array or other circuit that processes input signals ordata and that produces output signals or data in response thereto. Itshould be noted that while any functions and features described hereinin association with the operation of a processor could likewise beperformed by a processing circuit.

The illustrated embodiments of the embodiments herein can be alsopracticed in distributed computing environments where certain tasks areperformed by remote processing devices that are linked through acommunications network. In a distributed computing environment, programmodules can be located in both local and remote memory storage devices.

Computing devices typically comprise a variety of media, which cancomprise computer-readable storage media and/or communications media,which two terms are used herein differently from one another as follows.Computer-readable storage media can be any available storage media thatcan be accessed by the computer and comprises both volatile andnonvolatile media, removable and non-removable media. By way of example,and not limitation, computer-readable storage media can be implementedin connection with any method or technology for storage of informationsuch as computer-readable instructions, program modules, structured dataor unstructured data.

Computer-readable storage media can comprise, but are not limited to,random access memory (RAM), read only memory (ROM), electricallyerasable programmable read only memory (EEPROM), flash memory or othermemory technology, compact disk read only memory (CD-ROM), digitalversatile disk (DVD) or other optical disk storage, magnetic cassettes,magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devicesor other tangible and/or non-transitory media which can be used to storedesired information. In this regard, the terms “tangible” or“non-transitory” herein as applied to storage, memory orcomputer-readable media, are to be understood to exclude onlypropagating transitory signals per se as modifiers and do not relinquishrights to all standard storage, memory or computer-readable media thatare not only propagating transitory signals per se.

Computer-readable storage media can be accessed by one or more local orremote computing devices, e.g., via access requests, queries or otherdata retrieval protocols, for a variety of operations with respect tothe information stored by the medium.

Communications media typically embody computer-readable instructions,data structures, program modules or other structured or unstructureddata in a data signal such as a modulated data signal, e.g., a carrierwave or other transport mechanism, and comprises any informationdelivery or transport media. The term “modulated data signal” or signalsrefers to a signal that has one or more of its characteristics set orchanged in such a manner as to encode information in one or moresignals. By way of example, and not limitation, communication mediacomprise wired media, such as a wired network or direct-wiredconnection, and wireless media such as acoustic, RF, infrared and otherwireless media.

With reference again to FIG. 4, the example environment can comprise acomputer 402, the computer 402 comprising a processing unit 404, asystem memory 406 and a system bus 408. The system bus 408 couplessystem components including, but not limited to, the system memory 406to the processing unit 404. The processing unit 404 can be any ofvarious commercially available processors. Dual microprocessors andother multiprocessor architectures can also be employed as theprocessing unit 404.

The system bus 408 can be any of several types of bus structure that canfurther interconnect to a memory bus (with or without a memorycontroller), a peripheral bus, and a local bus using any of a variety ofcommercially available bus architectures. The system memory 406comprises ROM 410 and RAM 412. A basic input/output system (BIOS) can bestored in a non-volatile memory such as ROM, erasable programmable readonly memory (EPROM), EEPROM, which BIOS contains the basic routines thathelp to transfer information between elements within the computer 402,such as during startup. The RAM 412 can also comprise a high-speed RAMsuch as static RAM for caching data.

The computer 402 further comprises an internal hard disk drive (HDD) 414(e.g., EIDE, SATA), which internal HDD 414 can also be configured forexternal use in a suitable chassis (not shown), a magnetic floppy diskdrive (FDD) 416, (e.g., to read from or write to a removable diskette418) and an optical disk drive 420, (e.g., reading a CD-ROM disk 422 or,to read from or write to other high capacity optical media such as theDVD). The HDD 414, magnetic FDD 416 and optical disk drive 420 can beconnected to the system bus 408 by a hard disk drive interface 424, amagnetic disk drive interface 426 and an optical drive interface 428,respectively. The hard disk drive interface 424 for external driveimplementations comprises at least one or both of Universal Serial Bus(USB) and Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 1394interface technologies. Other external drive connection technologies arewithin contemplation of the embodiments described herein.

The drives and their associated computer-readable storage media providenonvolatile storage of data, data structures, computer-executableinstructions, and so forth. For the computer 402, the drives and storagemedia accommodate the storage of any data in a suitable digital format.Although the description of computer-readable storage media above refersto a hard disk drive (HDD), a removable magnetic diskette, and aremovable optical media such as a CD or DVD, it should be appreciated bythose skilled in the art that other types of storage media which arereadable by a computer, such as zip drives, magnetic cassettes, flashmemory cards, cartridges, and the like, can also be used in the exampleoperating environment, and further, that any such storage media cancontain computer-executable instructions for performing the methodsdescribed herein.

A number of program modules can be stored in the drives and RAM 412,comprising an operating system 430, one or more application programs432, other program modules 434 and program data 436. All or portions ofthe operating system, applications, modules, and/or data can also becached in the RAM 412. The systems and methods described herein can beimplemented utilizing various commercially available operating systemsor combinations of operating systems.

A user can enter commands and information into the computer 402 throughone or more wired/wireless input devices, e.g., a keyboard 438 and apointing device, such as a mouse 440. Other input devices (not shown)can comprise a microphone, an infrared (IR) remote control, a joystick,a game pad, a stylus pen, touch screen or the like. These and otherinput devices are often connected to the processing unit 404 through aninput device interface 442 that can be coupled to the system bus 408,but can be connected by other interfaces, such as a parallel port, anIEEE 1394 serial port, a game port, a universal serial bus (USB) port,an IR interface, etc.

A monitor 444 or other type of display device can be also connected tothe system bus 408 via an interface, such as a video adapter 446. Itwill also be appreciated that in alternative embodiments, a monitor 444can also be any display device (e.g., another computer having a display,a smart phone, a tablet computer, etc.) for receiving displayinformation associated with computer 402 via any communication means,including via the Internet and cloud-based networks. In addition to themonitor 444, a computer typically comprises other peripheral outputdevices (not shown), such as speakers, printers, etc.

The computer 402 can operate in a networked environment using logicalconnections via wired and/or wireless communications to one or moreremote computers, such as a remote computer(s) 448. The remotecomputer(s) 448 can be a workstation, a server computer, a router, apersonal computer, portable computer, microprocessor-based entertainmentappliance, a peer device or other common network node, and typicallycomprises many or all of the elements described relative to the computer402, although, for purposes of brevity, only a remote memory/storagedevice 450 is illustrated. The logical connections depicted comprisewired/wireless connectivity to a local area network (LAN) 452 and/orlarger networks, e.g., a wide area network (WAN) 454. Such LAN and WANnetworking environments are commonplace in offices and companies, andfacilitate enterprise-wide computer networks, such as intranets, all ofwhich can connect to a global communications network, e.g., theInternet.

When used in a LAN networking environment, the computer 402 can beconnected to the LAN 452 through a wired and/or wireless communicationnetwork interface or adapter 456. The adapter 456 can facilitate wiredor wireless communication to the LAN 452, which can also comprise awireless AP disposed thereon for communicating with the adapter 456.

When used in a WAN networking environment, the computer 402 can comprisea modem 458 or can be connected to a communications server on the WAN454 or has other means for establishing communications over the WAN 454,such as by way of the Internet. The modem 458, which can be internal orexternal and a wired or wireless device, can be connected to the systembus 408 via the input device interface 442. In a networked environment,program modules depicted relative to the computer 402 or portionsthereof, can be stored in the remote memory/storage device 450. It willbe appreciated that the network connections shown are example and othermeans of establishing a communications link between the computers can beused.

The computer 402 can be operable to communicate with any wirelessdevices or entities operatively disposed in wireless communication,e.g., a printer, scanner, desktop and/or portable computer, portabledata assistant, communications satellite, any piece of equipment orlocation associated with a wirelessly detectable tag (e.g., a kiosk,news stand, restroom), and telephone. This can comprise WirelessFidelity (Wi-Fi) and BLUETOOTH® wireless technologies. Thus, thecommunication can be a predefined structure as with a conventionalnetwork or simply an ad hoc communication between at least two devices.

Wi-Fi can allow connection to the Internet from a couch at home, a bedin a hotel room or a conference room at work, without wires. Wi-Fi is awireless technology similar to that used in a cell phone that enablessuch devices, e.g., computers, to send and receive data indoors and out;anywhere within the range of a base station. Wi-Fi networks use radiotechnologies called IEEE 802.11 (a, b, g, n, ac, ag, etc.) to providesecure, reliable, fast wireless connectivity. A Wi-Fi network can beused to connect computers to each other, to the Internet, and to wirednetworks (which can use IEEE 802.3 or Ethernet). Wi-Fi networks operatein the unlicensed 2.4 and 5 GHz radio bands for example or with productsthat contain both bands (dual band), so the networks can providereal-world performance similar to the basic 10BaseT wired Ethernetnetworks used in many offices.

Turning now to FIG. 5, an embodiment 500 of a mobile network platform510 is shown that is an example of network elements 150, 152, 154, 156,and/or VNEs 330, 332, 334, etc. In one or more embodiments, the mobilenetwork platform 510 can generate and receive signals transmitted andreceived by base stations or access points such as base station oraccess point 122. Generally, mobile network platform 510 can comprisecomponents, e.g., nodes, gateways, interfaces, servers, or disparateplatforms, that facilitate both packet-switched (PS) (e.g., internetprotocol (IP), frame relay, asynchronous transfer mode (ATM)) andcircuit-switched (CS) traffic (e.g., voice and data), as well as controlgeneration for networked wireless telecommunication. As a non-limitingexample, mobile network platform 510 can be included intelecommunications carrier networks, and can be considered carrier-sidecomponents as discussed elsewhere herein. Mobile network platform 510comprises CS gateway node(s) 512 which can interface CS traffic receivedfrom legacy networks like telephony network(s) 540 (e.g., publicswitched telephone network (PSTN), or public land mobile network (PLMN))or a signaling system #7 (SS7) network 560. CS gateway node(s) 512 canauthorize and authenticate traffic (e.g., voice) arising from suchnetworks. Additionally, CS gateway node(s) 512 can access mobility, orroaming, data generated through SS7 network 560; for instance, mobilitydata stored in a visited location register (VLR), which can reside inmemory 530. Moreover, CS gateway node(s) 512 interfaces CS-based trafficand signaling and PS gateway node(s) 518. As an example, in a 3GPP UMTSnetwork, CS gateway node(s) 512 can be realized at least in part ingateway GPRS support node(s) (GGSN). It should be appreciated thatfunctionality and specific operation of CS gateway node(s) 512, PSgateway node(s) 518, and serving node(s) 516, is provided and dictatedby radio technology(ies) utilized by mobile network platform 510 fortelecommunication over a radio access network 520 with other devices,such as radiotelephone 575.

In addition to receiving and processing CS-switched traffic andsignaling, PS gateway node(s) 518 can authorize and authenticatePS-based data sessions with served mobile devices. Data sessions cancomprise traffic, or content(s), exchanged with networks external to themobile network platform 510, like wide area network(s) (WAN) 550,enterprise network(s) 570, and service network(s) 580, which can beembodied in local area network(s) (LANs), can also be interfaced withmobile network platform 510 through PS gateway node(s) 518. It is to benoted that WAN 550 and enterprise network(s) 570 can embody, at least inpart, a service network(s) like IP multimedia subsystem (IMS). Based onradio technology layer(s) available in technology resource(s) of radioaccess network 520, PS gateway node(s) 518 can generate packet dataprotocol contexts when a data session is established; other datastructures that facilitate routing of packetized data also can begenerated. To that end, in an aspect, PS gateway node(s) 518 cancomprise a tunnel interface (e.g., tunnel termination gateway (TTG) in3GPP UMTS network(s) (not shown)) which can facilitate packetizedcommunication with disparate wireless network(s), such as Wi-Finetworks.

In embodiment 500, mobile network platform 510 also comprises servingnode(s) 516 that, based upon available radio technology layer(s) withintechnology resource(s) in the radio access network 520, convey thevarious packetized flows of data streams received through PS gatewaynode(s) 518. It is to be noted that for technology resource(s) that relyprimarily on CS communication, server node(s) can deliver trafficwithout reliance on PS gateway node(s) 518; for example, server node(s)can embody at least in part a mobile switching center. As an example, ina 3GPP UMTS network, serving node(s) 516 can be embodied in serving GPRSsupport node(s) (SGSN).

For radio technologies that exploit packetized communication, server(s)514 in mobile network platform 510 can execute numerous applicationsthat can generate multiple disparate packetized data streams or flows,and manage (e.g., schedule, queue, format . . . ) such flows. Suchapplication(s) can comprise add-on features to standard services (forexample, provisioning, billing, customer support . . . ) provided bymobile network platform 510. Data streams (e.g., content(s) that arepart of a voice call or data session) can be conveyed to PS gatewaynode(s) 518 for authorization/authentication and initiation of a datasession, and to serving node(s) 516 for communication thereafter. Inaddition to application server, server(s) 514 can comprise utilityserver(s), a utility server can comprise a provisioning server, anoperations and maintenance server, a security server that can implementat least in part a certificate authority and firewalls as well as othersecurity mechanisms, and the like. In an aspect, security server(s)secure communication served through mobile network platform 510 toensure network's operation and data integrity in addition toauthorization and authentication procedures that CS gateway node(s) 512and PS gateway node(s) 518 can enact. Moreover, provisioning server(s)can provision services from external network(s) like networks operatedby a disparate service provider; for instance, WAN 550 or GlobalPositioning System (GPS) network(s) (not shown). Provisioning server(s)can also provision coverage through networks associated to mobilenetwork platform 510 (e.g., deployed and operated by the same serviceprovider), such as the distributed antennas networks shown in FIG. 1(s)that enhance wireless service coverage by providing more networkcoverage.

It is to be noted that server(s) 514 can comprise one or more processorsconfigured to confer at least in part the functionality of mobilenetwork platform 510. To that end, the one or more processor can executecode instructions stored in memory 530, for example. It is should beappreciated that server(s) 514 can comprise a content manager, whichoperates in substantially the same manner as described hereinbefore.

In example embodiment 500, memory 530 can store information related tooperation of mobile network platform 510. Other operational informationcan comprise provisioning information of mobile devices served throughmobile network platform 510, subscriber databases; applicationintelligence, pricing schemes, e.g., promotional rates, flat-rateprograms, couponing campaigns; technical specification(s) consistentwith telecommunication protocols for operation of disparate radio, orwireless, technology layers; and so forth. Memory 530 can also storeinformation from at least one of telephony network(s) 540, WAN 550, SS7network 560, or enterprise network(s) 570. In an aspect, memory 530 canbe, for example, accessed as part of a data store component or as aremotely connected memory store.

In order to provide a context for the various aspects of the disclosedsubject matter, FIG. 5, and the following discussion, are intended toprovide a brief, general description of a suitable environment in whichthe various aspects of the disclosed subject matter can be implemented.While the subject matter has been described above in the general contextof computer-executable instructions of a computer program that runs on acomputer and/or computers, those skilled in the art will recognize thatthe disclosed subject matter also can be implemented in combination withother program modules. Generally, program modules comprise routines,programs, components, data structures, etc. that perform particulartasks and/or implement particular abstract data types.

Turning now to FIG. 6, an illustrative embodiment of a communicationdevice 600 is shown. The communication device 600 can serve as anillustrative embodiment of devices such as data terminals 114, mobiledevices 124, vehicle 126, display devices 144 or other client devicesfor communication via either communications network 125.

The communication device 600 can comprise a wireline and/or wirelesstransceiver 602 (herein transceiver 602), a user interface (UI) 604, apower supply 614, a location receiver 616, a motion sensor 618, anorientation sensor 620, and a controller 606 for managing operationsthereof. The transceiver 602 can support short-range or long-rangewireless access technologies such as Bluetooth®, ZigBee®, WiFi, DECT, orcellular communication technologies, just to mention a few (Bluetooth®and ZigBee® are trademarks registered by the Bluetooth® Special InterestGroup and the ZigBee® Alliance, respectively). Cellular technologies caninclude, for example, CDMA-1X, UMTS/HSDPA, GSM/GPRS, TDMA/EDGE, EV/DO,WiMAX, SDR, LTE, as well as other next generation wireless communicationtechnologies as they arise. The transceiver 602 can also be adapted tosupport circuit-switched wireline access technologies (such as PSTN),packet-switched wireline access technologies (such as TCP/IP, VoIP,etc.), and combinations thereof.

The UI 604 can include a depressible or touch-sensitive keypad 608 witha navigation mechanism such as a roller ball, a joystick, a mouse, or anavigation disk for manipulating operations of the communication device600. The keypad 608 can be an integral part of a housing assembly of thecommunication device 600 or an independent device operably coupledthereto by a tethered wireline interface (such as a USB cable) or awireless interface supporting for example Bluetooth®. The keypad 608 canrepresent a numeric keypad commonly used by phones, and/or a QWERTYkeypad with alphanumeric keys. The UI 604 can further include a display610 such as monochrome or color LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), OLED(Organic Light Emitting Diode) or other suitable display technology forconveying images to an end user of the communication device 600. In anembodiment where the display 610 is touch-sensitive, a portion or all ofthe keypad 608 can be presented by way of the display 610 withnavigation features.

The display 610 can use touch screen technology to also serve as a userinterface for detecting user input. As a touch screen display, thecommunication device 600 can be adapted to present a user interfacehaving graphical user interface (GUI) elements that can be selected by auser with a touch of a finger. The display 610 can be equipped withcapacitive, resistive or other forms of sensing technology to detect howmuch surface area of a user's finger has been placed on a portion of thetouch screen display. This sensing information can be used to controlthe manipulation of the GUI elements or other functions of the userinterface. The display 610 can be an integral part of the housingassembly of the communication device 600 or an independent devicecommunicatively coupled thereto by a tethered wireline interface (suchas a cable) or a wireless interface.

The UI 604 can also include an audio system 612 that utilizes audiotechnology for conveying low volume audio (such as audio heard inproximity of a human ear) and high volume audio (such as speakerphonefor hands free operation). The audio system 612 can further include amicrophone for receiving audible signals of an end user. The audiosystem 612 can also be used for voice recognition applications. The UI604 can further include an image sensor 613 such as a charged coupleddevice (CCD) camera for capturing still or moving images.

The power supply 614 can utilize common power management technologiessuch as replaceable and rechargeable batteries, supply regulationtechnologies, and/or charging system technologies for supplying energyto the components of the communication device 600 to facilitatelong-range or short-range portable communications. Alternatively, or incombination, the charging system can utilize external power sources suchas DC power supplied over a physical interface such as a USB port orother suitable tethering technologies.

The location receiver 616 can utilize location technology such as aglobal positioning system (GPS) receiver capable of assisted GPS foridentifying a location of the communication device 600 based on signalsgenerated by a constellation of GPS satellites, which can be used forfacilitating location services such as navigation. The motion sensor 618can utilize motion sensing technology such as an accelerometer, agyroscope, or other suitable motion sensing technology to detect motionof the communication device 600 in three-dimensional space. Theorientation sensor 620 can utilize orientation sensing technology suchas a magnetometer to detect the orientation of the communication device600 (north, south, west, and east, as well as combined orientations indegrees, minutes, or other suitable orientation metrics).

The communication device 600 can use the transceiver 602 to alsodetermine a proximity to a cellular, WiFi, Bluetooth®, or other wirelessaccess points by sensing techniques such as utilizing a received signalstrength indicator (RSSI) and/or signal time of arrival (TOA) or time offlight (TOF) measurements. The controller 606 can utilize computingtechnologies such as a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP),programmable gate arrays, application specific integrated circuits,and/or a video processor with associated storage memory such as Flash,ROM, RAM, SRAM, DRAM or other storage technologies for executingcomputer instructions, controlling, and processing data supplied by theaforementioned components of the communication device 600.

Other components not shown in FIG. 6 can be used in one or moreembodiments of the subject disclosure. For instance, the communicationdevice 600 can include a slot for adding or removing an identity modulesuch as a Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) card or Universal IntegratedCircuit Card (UICC). SIM or UICC cards can be used for identifyingsubscriber services, executing programs, storing subscriber data, and soon.

The terms “first,” “second,” “third,” and so forth, as used in theclaims, unless otherwise clear by context, is for clarity only anddoesn't otherwise indicate or imply any order in time. For instance, “afirst determination,” “a second determination,” and “a thirddetermination,” does not indicate or imply that the first determinationis to be made before the second determination, or vice versa, etc.

In the subject specification, terms such as “store,” “storage,” “datastore,” data storage,” “database,” and substantially any otherinformation storage component relevant to operation and functionality ofa component, refer to “memory components,” or entities embodied in a“memory” or components comprising the memory. It will be appreciatedthat the memory components described herein can be either volatilememory or nonvolatile memory, or can comprise both volatile andnonvolatile memory, by way of illustration, and not limitation, volatilememory, non-volatile memory, disk storage, and memory storage. Further,nonvolatile memory can be included in read only memory (ROM),programmable ROM (PROM), electrically programmable ROM (EPROM),electrically erasable ROM (EEPROM), or flash memory. Volatile memory cancomprise random access memory (RAM), which acts as external cachememory. By way of illustration and not limitation, RAM is available inmany forms such as synchronous RAM (SRAM), dynamic RAM (DRAM),synchronous DRAM (SDRAM), double data rate SDRAM (DDR SDRAM), enhancedSDRAM (ESDRAM), Synchlink DRAM (SLDRAM), and direct Rambus RAM (DRRAM).Additionally, the disclosed memory components of systems or methodsherein are intended to comprise, without being limited to comprising,these and any other suitable types of memory.

Moreover, it will be noted that the disclosed subject matter can bepracticed with other computer system configurations, comprisingsingle-processor or multiprocessor computer systems, mini-computingdevices, mainframe computers, as well as personal computers, hand-heldcomputing devices (e.g., PDA, phone, smartphone, watch, tabletcomputers, netbook computers, etc.), microprocessor-based orprogrammable consumer or industrial electronics, and the like. Theillustrated aspects can also be practiced in distributed computingenvironments where tasks are performed by remote processing devices thatare linked through a communications network; however, some if not allaspects of the subject disclosure can be practiced on stand-alonecomputers. In a distributed computing environment, program modules canbe located in both local and remote memory storage devices.

Some of the embodiments described herein can also employ artificialintelligence (AI) to facilitate automating one or more featuresdescribed herein. The embodiments (e.g., in connection withautomatically identifying acquired cell sites that provide a maximumvalue/benefit after addition to an existing communication network) canemploy various AI-based schemes for carrying out various embodimentsthereof. Moreover, the classifier can be employed to determine a rankingor priority of each cell site of the acquired network. A classifier is afunction that maps an input attribute vector, x=(x1, x2, x3, x4, . . . ,xn), to a confidence that the input belongs to a class, that is,f(x)=confidence (class). Such classification can employ a probabilisticand/or statistical-based analysis (e.g., factoring into the analysisutilities and costs) to determine or infer an action that a user desiresto be automatically performed. A support vector machine (SVM) is anexample of a classifier that can be employed. The SVM operates byfinding a hypersurface in the space of possible inputs, which thehypersurface attempts to split the triggering criteria from thenon-triggering events. Intuitively, this makes the classificationcorrect for testing data that is near, but not identical to trainingdata. Other directed and undirected model classification approachescomprise, e.g., naïve Bayes, Bayesian networks, decision trees, neuralnetworks, fuzzy logic models, and probabilistic classification modelsproviding different patterns of independence can be employed.Classification as used herein also is inclusive of statisticalregression that is utilized to develop models of priority.

As will be readily appreciated, one or more of the embodiments canemploy classifiers that are explicitly trained (e.g., via a generictraining data) as well as implicitly trained (e.g., via observing UEbehavior, operator preferences, historical information, receivingextrinsic information). For example, SVMs can be configured via alearning or training phase within a classifier constructor and featureselection module. Thus, the classifier(s) can be used to automaticallylearn and perform a number of functions, including but not limited todetermining according to predetermined criteria which of the acquiredcell sites will benefit a maximum number of subscribers and/or which ofthe acquired cell sites will add minimum value to the existingcommunication network coverage, etc.

As used in some contexts in this application, in some embodiments, theterms “component,” “system” and the like are intended to refer to, orcomprise, a computer-related entity or an entity related to anoperational apparatus with one or more specific functionalities, whereinthe entity can be either hardware, a combination of hardware andsoftware, software, or software in execution. As an example, a componentmay be, but is not limited to being, a process running on a processor, aprocessor, an object, an executable, a thread of execution,computer-executable instructions, a program, and/or a computer. By wayof illustration and not limitation, both an application running on aserver and the server can be a component. One or more components mayreside within a process and/or thread of execution and a component maybe localized on one computer and/or distributed between two or morecomputers. In addition, these components can execute from variouscomputer readable media having various data structures stored thereon.The components may communicate via local and/or remote processes such asin accordance with a signal having one or more data packets (e.g., datafrom one component interacting with another component in a local system,distributed system, and/or across a network such as the Internet withother systems via the signal). As another example, a component can be anapparatus with specific functionality provided by mechanical partsoperated by electric or electronic circuitry, which is operated by asoftware or firmware application executed by a processor, wherein theprocessor can be internal or external to the apparatus and executes atleast a part of the software or firmware application. As yet anotherexample, a component can be an apparatus that provides specificfunctionality through electronic components without mechanical parts,the electronic components can comprise a processor therein to executesoftware or firmware that confers at least in part the functionality ofthe electronic components. While various components have beenillustrated as separate components, it will be appreciated that multiplecomponents can be implemented as a single component, or a singlecomponent can be implemented as multiple components, without departingfrom example embodiments.

Further, the various embodiments can be implemented as a method,apparatus or article of manufacture using standard programming and/orengineering techniques to produce software, firmware, hardware or anycombination thereof to control a computer to implement the disclosedsubject matter. The term “article of manufacture” as used herein isintended to encompass a computer program accessible from anycomputer-readable device or computer-readable storage/communicationsmedia. For example, computer readable storage media can include, but arenot limited to, magnetic storage devices (e.g., hard disk, floppy disk,magnetic strips), optical disks (e.g., compact disk (CD), digitalversatile disk (DVD)), smart cards, and flash memory devices (e.g.,card, stick, key drive). Of course, those skilled in the art willrecognize many modifications can be made to this configuration withoutdeparting from the scope or spirit of the various embodiments.

In addition, the words “example” and “exemplary” are used herein to meanserving as an instance or illustration. Any embodiment or designdescribed herein as “example” or “exemplary” is not necessarily to beconstrued as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments ordesigns. Rather, use of the word example or exemplary is intended topresent concepts in a concrete fashion. As used in this application, theterm “or” is intended to mean an inclusive “or” rather than an exclusive“or”. That is, unless specified otherwise or clear from context, “Xemploys A or B” is intended to mean any of the natural inclusivepermutations. That is, if X employs A; X employs B; or X employs both Aand B, then “X employs A or B” is satisfied under any of the foregoinginstances. In addition, the articles “a” and “an” as used in thisapplication and the appended claims should generally be construed tomean “one or more” unless specified otherwise or clear from context tobe directed to a singular form.

Moreover, terms such as “user equipment,” “mobile station,” “mobile,”subscriber station,” “access terminal,” “terminal,” “handset,” “mobiledevice” (and/or terms representing similar terminology) can refer to awireless device utilized by a subscriber or user of a wirelesscommunication service to receive or convey data, control, voice, video,sound, gaming or substantially any data-stream or signaling-stream. Theforegoing terms are utilized interchangeably herein and with referenceto the related drawings.

Furthermore, the terms “user,” “subscriber,” “customer,” “consumer” andthe like are employed interchangeably throughout, unless contextwarrants particular distinctions among the terms. It should beappreciated that such terms can refer to human entities or automatedcomponents supported through artificial intelligence (e.g., a capacityto make inference based, at least, on complex mathematical formalisms),which can provide simulated vision, sound recognition and so forth.

As employed herein, the term “processor” can refer to substantially anycomputing processing unit or device comprising, but not limited tocomprising, single-core processors; single-processors with softwaremultithread execution capability; multi-core processors; multi-coreprocessors with software multithread execution capability; multi-coreprocessors with hardware multithread technology; parallel platforms; andparallel platforms with distributed shared memory. Additionally, aprocessor can refer to an integrated circuit, an application specificintegrated circuit (ASIC), a digital signal processor (DSP), a fieldprogrammable gate array (FPGA), a programmable logic controller (PLC), acomplex programmable logic device (CPLD), a discrete gate or transistorlogic, discrete hardware components or any combination thereof designedto perform the functions described herein. Processors can exploitnano-scale architectures such as, but not limited to, molecular andquantum-dot based transistors, switches and gates, in order to optimizespace usage or enhance performance of user equipment. A processor canalso be implemented as a combination of computing processing units.

As used herein, terms such as “data storage,” data storage,” “database,”and substantially any other information storage component relevant tooperation and functionality of a component, refer to “memorycomponents,” or entities embodied in a “memory” or components comprisingthe memory. It will be appreciated that the memory components orcomputer-readable storage media, described herein can be either volatilememory or nonvolatile memory or can include both volatile andnonvolatile memory.

What has been described above includes mere examples of variousembodiments. It is, of course, not possible to describe everyconceivable combination of components or methodologies for purposes ofdescribing these examples, but one of ordinary skill in the art canrecognize that many further combinations and permutations of the presentembodiments are possible. Accordingly, the embodiments disclosed and/orclaimed herein are intended to embrace all such alterations,modifications and variations that fall within the spirit and scope ofthe appended claims. Furthermore, to the extent that the term “includes”is used in either the detailed description or the claims, such term isintended to be inclusive in a manner similar to the term “comprising” as“comprising” is interpreted when employed as a transitional word in aclaim.

In addition, a flow diagram may include a “start” and/or “continue”indication. The “start” and “continue” indications reflect that thesteps presented can optionally be incorporated in or otherwise used inconjunction with other routines. In this context, “start” indicates thebeginning of the first step presented and may be preceded by otheractivities not specifically shown. Further, the “continue” indicationreflects that the steps presented may be performed multiple times and/ormay be succeeded by other activities not specifically shown. Further,while a flow diagram indicates a particular ordering of steps, otherorderings are likewise possible provided that the principles ofcausality are maintained.

As may also be used herein, the term(s) “operably coupled to”, “coupledto”, and/or “coupling” includes direct coupling between items and/orindirect coupling between items via one or more intervening items. Suchitems and intervening items include, but are not limited to, junctions,communication paths, components, circuit elements, circuits, functionalblocks, and/or devices. As an example of indirect coupling, a signalconveyed from a first item to a second item may be modified by one ormore intervening items by modifying the form, nature or format ofinformation in a signal, while one or more elements of the informationin the signal are nevertheless conveyed in a manner than can berecognized by the second item. In a further example of indirectcoupling, an action in a first item can cause a reaction on the seconditem, as a result of actions and/or reactions in one or more interveningitems.

Although specific embodiments have been illustrated and describedherein, it should be appreciated that any arrangement which achieves thesame or similar purpose may be substituted for the embodiments describedor shown by the subject disclosure. The subject disclosure is intendedto cover any and all adaptations or variations of various embodiments.Combinations of the above embodiments, and other embodiments notspecifically described herein, can be used in the subject disclosure.For instance, one or more features from one or more embodiments can becombined with one or more features of one or more other embodiments. Inone or more embodiments, features that are positively recited can alsobe negatively recited and excluded from the embodiment with or withoutreplacement by another structural and/or functional feature. The stepsor functions described with respect to the embodiments of the subjectdisclosure can be performed in any order. The steps or functionsdescribed with respect to the embodiments of the subject disclosure canbe performed alone or in combination with other steps or functions ofthe subject disclosure, as well as from other embodiments or from othersteps that have not been described in the subject disclosure. Further,more than or less than all of the features described with respect to anembodiment can also be utilized.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method comprising: obtaining, by a processingsystem having a processor, media content; analyzing, by the processingsystem, the media content to discern a point of interest in the mediacontent, wherein the analyzing results in scoring the point of interestin the media content; receiving, by the processing system, a requestfrom equipment of a user to view the media content; obtaining, by theprocessing system, information about the user; identifying, by theprocessing system, a predicted field of view of the user based on theinformation about the user and the scoring the point of interest in themedia content; sending, by the processing system, the predicted field ofview to the equipment of the user; monitoring, by the processing system,a line of sight of the user based upon eye movements of the user;updating, by the processing system, the scoring of the point of interestin the media content based on the line of sight of the user; andupdating, by the processing system, the predicted field of view of theuser based on the line of sight of the user.
 2. The method of claim 1,wherein the media content includes 360 degree video content.
 3. Themethod of claim 2, wherein the sending the predicted field of view tothe equipment of the user consists of sending only the predicted fieldof view.
 4. The method of claim 3, wherein the sending the predictedfield of view to the equipment of the user consists of sending less than180 degrees of the media content centered on the predicted field ofview.
 5. The method of claim 3, wherein the sending the predicted fieldof view to the equipment of the user consists of sending less than 90degrees of the media content centered on the predicted field of view. 6.The method of claim 1, further comprising sending, by the processingsystem to the equipment of the user, less than 135 degrees of the mediacontent centered on the line of sight of the user.
 7. The method ofclaim 1, further comprising aligning, by the processing system, a camerawith the line of sight of the user and wherein the obtaining the mediacontent further comprising obtaining the media content from the camera.8. The method of claim 1, wherein the monitoring the line of sightcomprises tracking the eye movements relative to an orientation of theuser.
 9. A non-transitory, machine-readable medium, comprisingexecutable instructions that, when executed by a processing systemincluding a processor, facilitate performance of operations, theoperations comprising: receiving video content from a 360 degree camera;analyzing the video content to discern a point of interest in the videocontent, resulting in an analysis of the video content which identifiesat least one potential point of interest; receiving a first request fromfirst equipment of a first user to view the video content; receiving asecond request from second equipment of a second user to view the videocontent; obtaining first information about the first user; obtainingsecond information about the second user; identifying a predicted fieldof view based on the first information, the second information, and theanalysis; sending the predicted field of view to the first equipment andthe second equipment; monitoring a first line of sight of the first userbased upon eye movements of the first user; monitoring a second line ofsight of the second user based upon eye movements of the second user;updating the analysis based on the first line of sight and the secondline of sight; and updating the predicted field of view based on thefirst line of sight and the second line of sight.
 10. Thenon-transitory, machine-readable medium of claim 9, wherein the sendingthe predicted field of view consists of sending only the predicted fieldof view.
 11. The non-transitory, machine-readable medium of claim 10,wherein the sending the predicted field of view consists of sending lessthan 135 degrees of the video content centered on the predicted field ofview.
 12. The non-transitory, machine-readable medium of claim 9, theoperations further comprising sending, to the first equipment, less than135 degrees of the video content centered on the first line of sight.13. The non-transitory, machine-readable medium of claim 9, theoperations further comprising determining a midpoint between the firstline of sight and the second line of sight and aligning the 360 degreecamera with the midpoint.
 14. The non-transitory, machine-readablemedium of claim 9, the operations further comprising determining amidpoint between the first line of sight and the predicted field ofview, and wherein the sending the predicted field of view comprises lessthan 180 degrees of the video content centered on the midpoint.
 15. Thenon-transitory, machine-readable medium of claim 14, the operationsfurther comprising aligning the 360 degree camera with the midpoint. 16.The non-transitory, machine-readable medium of claim 9, the operationsfurther comprising determining a midpoint between the first line ofsight, the second line of sight, and the predicted field of view, andwherein the sending the predicted field of view comprises less than 180degrees of the video content centered on the midpoint.
 17. Thenon-transitory, machine-readable medium of claim 16, the operationsfurther comprising aligning the 360 degree camera with the midpoint. 18.An apparatus, comprising: a processor; and a memory that storesexecutable instructions that, when executed by the processor, facilitateperformance of operations, comprising: receiving video content from a360 degree camera; analyzing the video content to discern a point ofinterest in the video content, resulting in an analysis of the videocontent which identifies at least one potential point of interest;receiving a request from equipment of a user to view the video content;obtaining information about the user; identifying a predicted field ofview based on the information and the analysis; sending less than 180degrees of the video content centered on the predicted field of view tothe equipment; monitoring a line of sight of the user based upon eyemovements of the user relative to an orientation of the user; updatingthe analysis based on the line of sight; and updating the predictedfield of view based on the line of sight.
 19. The apparatus of claim 18,the operations further comprising determining a midpoint between theline of sight and the predicted field of view, and wherein the sendingthe predicted field of view comprises less than 135 degrees of the videocontent centered on the midpoint.
 20. The apparatus of claim 19, theoperations further comprising aligning the 360 degree camera with themidpoint.